Re-uploaded because FF was messing up on me and not updating.
The sea was calm.
It was a fine day, with no clouds, and the water was warm and pleasant.
A few young children splashed in the shallows, their mothers sitting on towels and gossiping in brightly patterned swimsuits.
Further out in the ocean, a lone figure watched them, bobbing on his surfboard.
The sea pushed up against his legs, and he frowned, perturbed at the unsettling feeling he had.
Below the man, further down than any human could go, the sea roiled and spun.
Pairs of eyes glinted, their featureless dark faces turned up towards the distant surface.
A low groan echoed softly across the bottom of the sea, where a small crack was growing larger.
In another spiritual plain, a man with a large nose shuffled a deck of cards while a sharply dressed, handsome man stood behind an elegant bar, cleaning a glass leisurely.
The tastefully decorated lounge was bathed in a blue light, and the only sounds were the quiet hum of a ceiling fan and the tick of a large, strange, seemingly 24-hour clock.
The long nosed man finished shuffling his cards and laid a few on the coffee table in front of him.
As he studied them, the man at the bar set down his glass and leaned over the counter. He asked, "What do the cards say, sir?", his fingers tracing elaborate designs on the bar's surface.
Waving the question off, the other man quietly studied the cards in front of him. He picked his deck up up once more and shuffled it again.
In an oily voice, he intoned, "The Emperor and Magician cards upright," he laid another card down, "the High Priestess upright." His hand wavered with the next card, but he continued monotonously, "The Death card, upright, of course."
He placed more cards down. "The Judgement card upright and the Tower reversed, and the Star and Chariot cards upright."
The two men sat in silence for a moment contemplating the meaning of the mystic cards.
The quiet was broken by a loud chime from the clock. It seemed to re-animate the man at the bar, and he inquired, in an almost bored drawl, "Are you going to tell her about this?" He looked expectantly towards the other man.
The older man shook his head and replied, "She wouldn't believe me even if I told her. She hasn't accepted that open-minded side of herself yet."
Glancing down at his hand, which had continued to draw the patterns displayed there, the man at the bar retorted, "You can't know that for sure, Igor, she seems to be very intuitive." He bit back more defensive remarks before composing himself and stating, in a smooth voice, "Why don't we consult the cards?" He gestured towards them with his free hand.
Igor glared back at him with indignation, "The cards do not serve that purpose, and you would do well to learn some respect, boy." The man stuck his tongue out and at him and Igor sighed and muttered to himself. "No respect these days... did better with female attendants... those silly girls busy with their own matters..."
Clearing his throat, Igor picked up his cards and continued on in a normal tone of voice, "Anyway, that doesn't matter now. The cards won't come into effect until a few days from now, and the girl still has a few days of innocence until then," he looked back towards his attendant, "And maybe I'll change my mind before then."
The man at the bar grinned and picked up his glass again, humming to himself as he polished it for the umpteenth time.
And the sea was calm.
Thanks for reading.
It will take a few chapters to get to the plot, but here's the first building block.
If you have any comments or questions, or you noticed any errors, send a review.
(Oh, and if you would like to know what the card reading means, ask and I'll PM you. :) )